1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a process and apparatus for recycling sealed cell zinc carbon and alkaline type batteries.
2. Description of the Related Art
Ninety-five percent of portable batteries are household batteries. The vast majority of these are sealed cell alkaline batteries. Once spent, most of these batteries are simply discarded and find their way to landfill sites.
A known method for recycling alkaline and zinc carbon batteries involves mechanically removing the casing from the battery cell and then using chemical processes to separate the solid materials of the cell. The three major solid components of the cells are zinc, carbon, and manganese. There are several problems with chemical separation processes. Firstly, the component materials involved are of low value while chemical processing is expensive. Also, additional waste streams are created with the chemical processes. In view of these drawbacks, this recycling method has not found wide spread use.
This invention seeks to overcome drawbacks of known zinc carbon and alkaline battery recycling processes.